An Interesting Year
by alexxtennantpiper
Summary: "Good morning class," River Song said. "I am Professor Song, and I'm going to be your teacher for Defense Against the Dark Arts this year."
1. Chapter 1

Professor Song stood at the front of the classroom, watching as all the students filed in and sat down at their desks – half of them wearing some red clothes, the other half wearing green. What period was this again? Of course, third period, which meant fourth-year Gryffindors and Slytherins. So she would finally get to meet the famous Harry Potter that the whole wizarding world had been talking about since he defeated Voldemort. River Song was one of the few people who would actually say the name. She wasn't afraid of some name, although she did agree you should be careful of names – sometimes they could be cursed. She'd heard of it happening before, and it was always better to be safe than sorry. Finally, all twenty students were seated.

"Good morning class," River Song said. "I am Professor Song, and I'm going to be your teacher for Defense Against the Dark Arts this year." Suddenly, a hand shot up in the air; River arched her eyebrow. "Yes, miss…?"

"Granger, miss. Hermione Granger. I was just wondering if we're going to be using defensive spells this year?" the girl said. She had frizzy brown hair and bright, curious eyes.

"Ah, now, Miss Granger. Spoilers," River replied with a mischievous grin. "Anyway, as I understand, you learned about quite a few creatures with your teacher last year, who I believe turned out to be a werewolf. So this year, we're going to start with something new but simple – hex deflection. Please repeat after me, without wands. _Salvio Hexia_."

"_Salvio Hexia,_" the class chorused.

"Very good, very good! Again, please!"

"_Salvio Hexia_," they repeated.

"Right, I think you're ready to use your wands now. Any volunteers? Miss Granger, perhaps, since you seem so eager?" River asked. Hermione stood up, nervously made her way to the front of the classroom, and took out her wand. "Right, I'm going to attempt to hex you, a very mild hex to begin with, and I'd like you to move your wand downwards while holding your other hand up with your palm facing me and say '_Salvio Hexia_'. Understand?" she said to the girl, who nodded.

"_Titillando_!" Professor Song said clearly with a sweep of her wand. Purple hand-shaped ribbons of light sprouted and made their way to Hermione, who quickly and perfectly deflected them. "Brilliant, Miss Granger," she cried. "Absolutely fantastic!"

Hermione's face lit up and she grinned, then returned to her seat.

"Right, I'd like you each to pair up with the other person at your table and take turns practicing the hex deflector. Simply use the hex I used, the tickling hex. Off to work, now, please!" River Song said brightly. Everyone paired together and began practicing. She walked around the classroom, observing the student's progress. As expected, not everyone got it on the first try like Hermione did – a red-haired boy was laughing crazily while a boy with floppy black hair was flipping desperately through a book, apparently looking for a counter-curse. River hurried over, removed the hex, and helped the ginger boy up to his feet.

"Thank you, Professor," he muttered sheepishly.

"No problem. What's your name, love?" she asked.

"Ron Weasley. And this is…" he trailed off, looking at the boy with floppy black hair. River followed his gaze and smiled at the boy.

"Harry Potter. I'd recognize you anywhere. Pleased to meet you. But don't expect any special treatment because you're famous, mister Potter," she said, pointing at him sternly and laughing. Harry gave her a small, embarrassed smile.

"I wouldn't want special treatment, Professor. Trust me," he said. River nodded and smiled at him, then went to assist other students. Hermione Granger was paired with a pretty Indian girl who was also, like her partner, performing the hex-deflector perfectly. "Brilliant, girls!" she grinned, and continued. A blond-haired boy was attempting to hex a girl with dark glossy hair, but she was deflecting it well.

"What are your names?" River asked. The pair stopped practicing and turned to the professor.

"I'm Draco Malfoy, and this is Pansy Parkinson," he sneered. He was clearly very full of himself. He wore black pants and a white shirt with a robe draped over, the inside of which was green. He also wore a tie of green and silver. The boy held himself high and seemed to look down upon everyone else. Immediately, River knew that he wouldn't be the most pleasant student this year. The girl next to him sat with the same posture.

"Well, good work. Keep it up," she said with a nod and a small smile. Soon, the class was nearly over. "I'd like a six-inch paper on the types of hexes, how strong they are, and how they differ from jinxes. Due next week!" she told the class. The bell rang and they filed out. It seemed like this would be an interesting year.


	2. Chapter 2

River had a few minutes before the next people nervously stepped into the room. Except for a girl with long blond hair and dreamy blue-gray eyes. She walked dreamily into the classroom and took a seat in the first row. She wore a blue and silver tie that emphasized the color of her hair and eyes. River immediately liked her and she grinned at the girl, who smiled faintly back. Another girl sat down next to the blond one – she had the same hair as that boy in the last period…Weasley, was it? Either their distinctive hair color was a coincidence, or they were siblings. Most likely the latter. The flame-haired girl wore a red tie like the other boy had. They had to be siblings. More people filed into the room and soon everyone was sitting down.

"Hello there. I'm Professor Song," she began, and continued her ritual of introducing herself, who she was, what they would be learning, things like that. They spent the class practicing the disarming spell, River walking around to supervise. They seemed to know it quite well, and she was pleased with them. Before they left, she assigned them a six-inch paper on the history of _Expelliarmus_, the disarming spell. She also learned the name of the two girls in the front – Ginny Weasley and Luna Lovegood. So Ginny and Ron _were _siblings. Although she seemed a bit more skilled and focused than her older brother. The majority of the class had left, except for the blond girl, Luna. She was admiring a small dark green Puffskein in a sizable glass cage. Her hand was reached in and gently petting the creature's back, causing it to hum in content. River walked over to her.

"I've never seen one of this color," she said dreamily. "I've seen a neon green, but not this shade. It's quite like a Slytherin kind of color, isn't it?"

"Yes, I got it from someone about a year ago – he had them in all sorts of unusual colors, but I liked this one the best," River replied. Luna turned to face her, the ghost of a smile upon her face.

"People usually don't treat them too nicely. They tend to throw them to their friends, toss them about, that sort of thing." She turned back to the humming creature. "If you treat them nicely, they can be lovely little things."

"I agree."

"What's his name?"

"Actually, he doesn't really have a name, sweetie. But you can choose one for him if you like."

Luna turned to River and smiled. "Really?...Well, I'll think and get back to you later this week. A good name shouldn't be rushed." She smiled again and skipped out of the room. River gave a small chuckle and shook her head a little. The girl was peculiar, but in a good way. With another tiny laugh, the professor walked up the stairs to her office, closed the door behind her, and sat down. After she opened a drawer in the desk in front of her, she pulled out a simple sandwich. She preferred not to eat with the other teachers at lunch, it being her personal reflection time. Her office was a beautiful room, decorated with green, silver, and black. She was actually the new head of house for Slytherin – and probably the nicest one yet. They had quietly replaced Severus Snape with her, feeling that she was more…_responsible_, for lack of better words. A few of the students had been complaining about him, and the school had standards to keep up. After all, this was Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry – one of the best in the world!

River sighed a little when she caught sight of the cell phone on the far end of the desk. When The Doctor had dropped her off at this school, he had given her that phone, making her promise to phone him at least once a day, which she hadn't yet done. She didn't really feel like talking to anyone, but this _was_ her husband…she picked up and phone and pressed the speed dial, connecting her through dimensions.

"Hello?" said a breathless voice, and River immediately grinned to herself, glad she called him.

"Hello, sweetie," she replied. She could almost hear him smile.

"I'm so glad you called, but – ah – well, at the moment, I'm kind of busy," he told her nervously. River laughed and shook her head, imagining what kind of predicament he was in now. She wasn't worried about him; he always came out alright.

"Right, just call me back later, ok? But as soon as you can, because the timing between us is weird," she said. He gave her a quick goodbye and she hung up, putting the phone back on the corner of the desk. For all she knew, he could phone back in a minute or he could phone back in a year. That was the problem with being in different dimensions – timing. River continued to eat her sandwich until there was a gentle knock at the door. It was soft, but it made her jump a little nonetheless. "Come in," she called. The door opened, and there was Hermione. River Song smiled warmly and gestured to the seat across from her on the other side of the desk.

"What can I do for you, love?" she said.

"Actually, I just kind of wanted to talk to someone," she replied nervously.


	3. Chapter 3

River Song arched her eyebrow slightly. "Is there something wrong, Miss Granger?" she asked, concerned. Even though it was only the first day and she didn't know her very well, she liked this girl.

"No, professor. I was just wondering if I could go over the lesson plans for this month with you?" Hermione asked.

"Of course, love," she replied with a small chuckle. The younger girl grinned nervously as River pulled out her notes for the month. Together, they went over the delicate, spidery handwriting and by the time they were finished, Hermione was clearly satisfied, and thanked her professor. She made for the door, but paused for a moment before turning back around to face River. "I…I also wanted to ask some advice."

River gestured toward the chair, and Hermione once again sat down. "What is it, sweetheart?"

"I think I fancy someone, but I don't know if I should tell this person. Other people probably won't approve of it, you see," she said in a small voice.

"I've been to many places you can't imagine, and as such, I have quite an open mind. I can keep secrets well, too, love," River replied.

With a sigh, the girl continued. "I…I think I'm in love with Luna Lovegood, to be honest. I didn't even know I fancy girls, but she's just so beautiful and amazing, and…"

River smiled. "There's nothing wrong with liking another girl, love. I fancy both myself, but I'm a supporter of all. There's absolutely nothing wrong with it. Anyone else who says so is just narrow-minded and doesn't realize that love is love, no matter what."

"Really?" Hermione said, brightening up a bit. "That's what I believe, but I feel like many people don't share that opinion. I guess they're just a bit silly, aren't they?"

River Song nodded. Her advice to the younger girl was to observe Luna a bit more to see if it seemed like she fancied girls, and if she did, then tell her. She left with a smile on her face and a slight skip in her step. She smiled after the girl, glad she could help her. She was a sweet girl, brave. River lazily pointed her wand at the ceiling and flicked it, causing the room to change into a beautiful, realistic planetarium. Galaxies stretched across the ceiling and onto the walls, and stars of all sizes were scattered all around. She took a deep breath, reveling in the beauty. The child of the TARDIS, back among the stars – even in this peculiar wizard school. Suddenly, her phone buzzed. She picked it up and answered just as a blue police box came into view on the wall in front of her, spinning and making its familiar, soothing noise.

"Hello?" said the voice. River grinned and said, "Hello, sweetie."

The couple had a conversation about what they'd been doing. Apparently when she phoned, The Doctor had had another encounter with some of his least favorite enemies – the Slitheen family, from the planet Raxacoricofallapatorius. His last encounter with them had been two regenerations ago, but they were apparently back…and according to him, they had escaped yet again. He was getting a little rusty, she thought. She asked him how her parents, the Ponds, were doing. There was actually a Pond and a Williams, but they referred to them as the Ponds because The Doctor had met Amelia Pond when she was quite young. She was the first one to see his new face, even before he saw it! She was only seven years old, and scared by a crack in her wall, through which was seeping time and space itself. He meant to return for her in five minutes but instead returned after about twelve years, when she was nineteen. She decided to run away with him. They were eventually joined by Rory Williams, her fiancé – they got married and then had her, Melody Pond, aka River Song. And then, they discovered that the child of the TARDIS was not only that, but was also a witch! Definitely not your usual family story, but a very interesting one nonetheless. River and The Doctor finished their conversation and she hung up, and then leaned back in her chair to gaze up at the stars. The TARDIS was travelling across the ceiling now. Where would he be going now? The next few classes were relatively uneventful, except for the fact that one girl tripped over her robes and landed flat on her face. Soon the day was over and River Song retreated to her room.

Her room was beautiful. It was through a secret door at the back of her office, and the walls and ceiling were the same as the room it adjoined. It was simply breath-taking. Her queen-sized bed was draped with dark green and silver blankets and matching pillows, making a contrast with the swirling galaxies and stars in the rest of the room. The TARDIS had a strange smell that she couldn't quite put a finger on, but she had somehow replicated it to flow throughout the room, making her feel relaxed and comfortable – almost like she was back home, in the spinning blue police box. She missed that bloody crazy box and the madman who lived in it – The Doctor, but to tell the truth, but this would be an incredible adventure – she could feel it.


	4. Chapter 4

The next week or two was relatively uneventful, until one day River Song was playing around with the ceiling, changing it from a regular ceiling to the galaxies and stars in her office and personal room. Double DADA with the third-year Ravenclaws and Gryffindors, which meant Ginny and Luna would be there. She didn't even notice the door opening until Luna pulled back the chair at the front desk. River looked up and grinned at the girl. She was rewarded with a dreamy smile and greeting. Luna looked up at the ceiling in wonder.

"It's beautiful," she said. "How do you do it?"

"It's quite a simple spell actually," River replied, flicking her wand and changing it back to an ordinary stone ceiling. "If you want, I can teach it to you after class, when you have free time."

"I'd like that," the blond girl said, smiling. She paused a moment, staring at River. "You're not from around here. I can tell. Where are you from?"

The older woman was surprised. "I come from a long way away, love."

Luna nodded and looked like she was about to ask another question, but the rest of the class was already walking in, laughing and talking. Ginny took her usual seat next to Luna at the front desk and they began talking about their day. Soon, everyone was sitting and waiting for the lesson to start. River began by greeting the class and explaining what they would be doing that day.

"But first, I'd like to pass back your papers on the disarming spell that you turned in last week," she said. The class had done quite well as a whole, and there were no moans of despair as she passed back the papers. In fact, there were quite a few smiles and laughs of amazement. The other teachers must have graded harshly. They began the lesson practicing the disarming spell, only for the first ten minutes, though. After that, River Song lectured on boggarts and taught the spell for repelling a boggart. This took up another hour and twenty minutes, which meant that they still had half an hour free.

"Right, you may leave early as long as you don't terrorize the halls," River told the class, to their shock. Professors never let them out early, especially in this class. However, they packed up their things and left, not about to pass up such an opportunity. None of them would end up getting themselves or Professor Song in trouble. As she had a few times before, Luna stayed. She was over at the Puffskein's cage and was playing with it through the wide bars. River smiled to herself and walked over to her.

"How are you, love?" she asked the girl.

"I'm quite well, thank you," she replied. "An interesting thing happened the other day, actually. Someone told me that Hermione was watching me the other day – with a peculiar look, as though she fancied me."

"Have you considered talking to her about it?"

"Yes, but I'm not quite sure how to go about it, you see."

"I see." River looked at her shoes, thinking, and then looked back up at the blond girl. "If I were you, I'd just confront her about it directly. Just out of curiosity, do you like her? As in, you'd be in a relationship with her?"

She barely even thought about it. "I've liked her since I first met her."

"Brilliant! Then I'd get her somewhere private and say, 'I fancy you, and I have the feeling that you feel the same way.'"

Luna nodded and thanked her. "By the way, you never did really answer my question about where you're from, professor."

River sighed and stayed silent for a few moments. "Why do people think you're strange, Luna?"

"Because I believe in things that they think don't exist," she replied.

"I come from somewhere that nobody, maybe not even you, would believe. I come from somewhere called a TARDIS. It stands for Time and Relative Dimension in Space. It's a spaceship, Luna, but it looks like a blue police box – like the ones in London, you know? It can travel in time, like a time-turner, but it can also travel in space, so I could go to, say, the moon if I wanted to. Actually, I could go anywhere in the universe. I come from there. I used to travel with a man called the Doctor, but I asked him to drop me off here for a while to teach. It's quite mad when you think about it, really."

"Not particularly," Luna replied. River Song was shocked. _Not particularly_? Goodness, what else did this girl believe in? River couldn't help but think she was absolutely brilliant, though.

"Do me a favor, love, and don't tell anyone. I'd appreciate it a lot."

"Of course," Luna nodded. She paused. "So, out there in the big universe, I bet you've seen a lot, haven't you?"

River grinned and laughed. "You have no idea. Just last night I got a call from the Doctor to tell me he'd discovered a race of aliens called the Gelth invading another planet, and he had to drive them out. They're quite evil, you see. But he managed to get rid of them. He's quite incredible, really. Come to think of it, you remind me a bit of him. You're both _very_ smart, believe in unusual things…interesting." She peered at the girl, a faint idea in the back of her head. _No_, she thought. _That's not possible_.

Luna, however, didn't notice the strange look, and instead began to talk about all sorts of creatures she believed in. There were nargles, mischievous things that lived in mistletoe and liked to steal. There was the Crumple-Horned Snorkack, Blibbering Humdinger, and the Moon Frog. River Song found this amusing, not because she thought this girl was bonkers, but because all of these creatures actually existed on other planets and some of them had come to Earth. The creatures were very good hiders, and it took someone incredibly skilled to find one. This girl was absolutely brilliant.


	5. Chapter 5

She had to be. She was so much like him – quirky, smart, and completely brilliant. Luna was so much like the Doctor; it couldn't just be a coincidence. Multiple times, DNA had been taken from him. It could've gone anywhere, to anyone, produced any child, and perhaps this peculiar blond was one of them. It was definitely possible. River ran into her room and yanked open the desk drawers until she found the correct one. She yanked out papers covered in Gallifreyan and scattered them on the desk. Quickly scanning her eyes over them, she grabbed the one that read, "I am the Doctor, the oncoming storm" and a few others that had meaningless words on them, and stuffed the rest back in the drawer. She then gently laid out the selected pages on her desk and smoothed them out. The next time Luna had her class, she would ask the girl to look at these; if she could read them, if they were translated inside her head, River would know she was a Gallifreyan, a child of the Doctor. If she couldn't read them, it was just a major coincidence.

Meanwhile, Hermione sat at the Gryffindor table with Ron, Ginny, and Harry, Luna peering up to look at her from time to time. Each time she looked up, Hermione would be looking at her, but she dipped her head down and pretended to be focusing on the three friends she sat with. Eventually, Luna stood up and walked over to the Gryffindor girl.

"Hermione, may I speak to you for a moment?" she asked. "In private?"

"Of course," she answered, looking terrified but also intrigued and excited at the same time. The two walked out of the Great Hall, down the corridor, and ducked into an empty room, closing the door behind them. Hermione took a deep breath and turned around to face Luna.

"I think I'm in love with you," said Hermione breathlessly. Luna grinned.

"I feel the same way." She stepped towards her and embraced her in a gentle kiss. The other girl kissed back, and they stood in each other's embrace for a while before sitting down against the wall, just holding each other.

"So, I guess we're dating now?" Hermione said with a nervous chuckle.

"Only if you want to," Luna replied, and Hermione grinned at her, kissing her again. "I guess that's a yes," the blond laughed.

They sat, holding each other, for a while, until they thought it was time for class. With a tender, parting kiss, they went their separate ways, Luna to double Potions with Snape and Hermione to Defense Against the Dark Arts with Professor River Song. When Hermione walked in the classroom, River looked up and grinned.

"I'm assuming you talked to Luna, then," she chuckled. She must have seen the confusion on the girl's face, because she said, "Your hair's a bit muddled up, love."

Hermione embarrassedly smoothed down her hair as Harry and Ron, who seemed to be joined at the hip, walked in and took their seat. Soon, Pavarti walked in and took her seat next to Hermione, who was blushing slightly. They began chatting about something, probably girl stuff. River couldn't make out what they were saying from her desk. Soon, the whole class, Gryffindors and Slytherins, were seated and looking expectantly at Professor Song. She began the lesson with her usual greeting. Ron whispered something to Harry, so River whacked him on the back of the head with a rolled-up newspaper. The whole class giggled, and the ginger gave a sheepish smile. Harry laughed a little with the rest of the class. They didn't really cover anything major that day, and there was no homework assigned.

"Hermione? May I talk to you for a moment?" River called out as the class was leaving. The whole class was quickly gone and Hermione was sitting at a desk, facing River.

"So, how did it go with Luna, love?" she asked, genuinely interested.

Hermione grinned. "Well, it actually went quite well. There wasn't as much talking as I thought there would be. More kissing," she said with a nervous laugh.

The two discussed it a bit more and the younger girl left feeling happy. River was glad she could help the two. Why was it that everybody seemed to trust her and go to her for advice on love? Probably because she was quite brilliant at giving advice, match-making. After all, she had matched her own parents. It was a complicated story, but it happened. River chuckled thinking of this. How strange the universe could be. Suddenly, a previous idea rose up in her head – the idea of Luna. She was so much like the Doctor. She went back into her office and looked at the papers of Gallifreyan language on her desk. Luna would have class with her tomorrow. But now, it was time for lunch. As usual, the child of the TARDIS sat in her office alone, playing around with the ceiling. The TARDIS wasn't floating across the sky today. How she longed for it, the noise it made when that silly Doctor left the brakes on to park it. With every passing moment, River was more sure of the fact that Luna a daughter of the Doctor. Suddenly, she laughed. What were the chances, meeting her here? It was only on an off-chance that she had asked the Doctor to drop her off here to teach. The chances of meeting a daughter of the Doctor was almost zero to nothing, especially since she was a witch, too. Alas, she would have to wait for Luna's next class to see if she really was a daughter of the Time Lord.

With a wave of her wand, a teacup floated down to her and filled itself with tea and milk. A few sugar cubes and a spoon materialized and plopped themselves into the tea, the spoon gently stirring the liquid. River picked up the cup and took a sip. Perfect.


End file.
